Two firms in West Yorkshire have been fined by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for calling people registered with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS).

Bradford-based Energy Saving Centre Ltd, which offers services such as replacement windows and doors and guttering, made seven million calls over a seven month period without screening them against the TPS register. The ICO has fined the firm £250,000because at least 34,000 of these calls were made to TPS subscribers.

It is against the law to call someone registered with the TPS unless that person has given their consent to receive calls from that company.

Andy Curry, ICO Enforcement Group Manager, said:

“People register with the TPS for a clear reason – to stop unwanted marketing calls and protect their privacy. It is the first thing any responsible business should check when making live marketing calls.

“We are committed to taking strong action against firms calling people registered with the TPS, as these fines show.”

The ICO carried out investigations into the two firms after complaints made by members of the public.

Both firms bought the information used to make the phone calls from other companies and failed to check it against the TPS register to ensure the phone calls they were making complied with the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR).